Rolland Hein (September 12, 1932 – March 10, 2023) was an American academic of English literature. He was professor emeritus of English at Wheaton College,

Wheaton, Illinois Wheaton is a city in and the county seat of DuPage County, Illinois, United States. It is located in Milton and Winfield Townships, approximately west of Chicago. As of the 2020 census, Wheaton's population was 53,970, making it the 27th-mos ...

Early life and education

Hein was born on September 12, 1932, as the son of George and Henrietta Hein. He grew up on a farm outside

Cedar Rapids, Iowa Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 137,710 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Iowa, second-most populous city in Iowa. The city lies o ...

. He attended

Bob Jones University Bob Jones University (BJU) is a private university in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. It is known for its Conservatism in the United States, conservative and Evangelicalism in the United States, evangelical cultural and religious posit ...

and graduated from Wheaton College in 1954. While at Wheaton, Hein studied under Clyde Kilby, who was responsible for helping to secure the papers of writers C. S. Lewis and

J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...

for the Marion E. Wade Center at Wheaton College. Hein earned a bachelor of divinity degree in 1957 from

Grace Theological Seminary Grace Theological Seminary (GTS) is a conservative evangelical Christian seminary located in Winona Lake, Indiana. GTS is now part of Grace College & Seminary and is associated with Charis Fellowship, before 2018 known as the Fellowship of Grace ...

and a master's degree in English literature from

Purdue University Purdue University is a Public university#United States, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded ...

in 1962. He then earned a PhD from Purdue in 1971.

Professional career

Hein began his career as a pastor at a church in

Flora, Indiana Flora is a town in Monroe Township, Carroll County, Indiana, United States. The population was 2,036 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is part of the Lafayette, Indiana Lafayette, Indiana metropolitan area, Metropolitan Statistic ...

. He then joined the faculty of Wheaton College in 1970. He taught courses in modern British literature and contemporary American literature. Hein was a

George MacDonald George MacDonald (10 December 1824 – 18 September 1905) was a Scottish author, poet and Christian Congregational minister. He became a pioneering figure in the field of modern fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow-writer Lewis Carrol ...

scholar and author of several books, including ''Growing With My Garden'', ''Christian Mythmakers'', "The Harmony Within", George MacDonald: Victorian Mythmaker", and others. Hein retired from Wheaton in 1997.

Personal life and death

Hein was married to his wife Dorothy for 67 years. They had a son, Steven, and a daughter, Christine. Hein died in

Carol Stream, Illinois Carol Stream is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States, and a suburb of Chicago. It was incorporated on January 5, 1959, and named after the daughter of its founder, Jay Stream. Per the 2020 census, the population was 39,854. Hist ...

, on March 10, 2023, at the age of 90.

References

External links

Rolland Hein: books, biography, latest update
1932 births 2023 deaths Wheaton College (Illinois) alumni American academics of English literature Wheaton College (Illinois) faculty People from Linn County, Iowa {{US-English-academic-bio-stub